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marnash's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Saw it on the kitchen counter, remembered Ima recommended it, and then read it in 3 days. Was good. At times not gripping enough and found myaelf putting it down, somewhat bored. I liked the writing, though some of the characters were too similar (or not distinct enough?) and so I found myself mixing them. It didn't help that the plot kept moving between years and decades, so sometimes it was hard to distinguish what was happening. Without having read the blurb beforehand, I'd have no idea what was going on. Still - enjoyed it, though it was quite sad throughout it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Infidelity
Moderate: Child abuse and Cancer
nothingforpomegranted's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This masterful, nonlinear, hefty family saga by Ann Patchett begins with Franny Keating christening party, a neighborhood affair that investigative lawyer Albert Cousins crashes, bottle of gin in hand, in a desperate attempt to spend a few hours away from both his own family and the office. Cousins' unexpected arrival gives Fix Keating, Fanny's father, a chance to escape the crowd to buy a few bags of ice, and the entire party winds up a little beyond tipsy on liquor and fresh-squeezed California orange juice. When Cousins kisses Beverly Keating in Fanny's bedroom before bringing the baby back down to her father, he sets off fifty years of complicated blended family dynamics.
The Cousins children and the Keatings children are subject to the whims of their parents and spend the rest of their childhood flitting back and forth across the country from one parent's home to the other, reunited in the summers at Beverly and Bert's new home in Virginia, where they are free to do as they please, happily adventuring to the beach and all around town while their parents sleep. The irresponsibility is overwhelming, and the consequences of self-directed children are painfully resonant into adulthood, though Patchett's skill at weaving through timelines prohibits any one scene from becoming paralyzing.
Indeed, most of the story is told from the perspectives of the now-adult children, reflecting on their summers together and the ways their lives have changed and not in the ensuing decades. Patchett beautifully dances the complicated line of lost communication and continued devotion between these semi-siblings, and I loved exploring their relationships and uncertainties with her. Every character seems to have lost his or her way, and the journey through Fanny's long relationship with older author Leon Posen and its aftermath was brilliantly executed, effectively demonstrating each character's confusion and frustration from toddlerhood into their adult lives.
Patchett is a master of navigating complex stories, and this novel is no exception. The slow start took a while to hook me, but the quiet beginning and understated storytelling only further dramatize the unexpected moments of the novel and emphasize Patchett's strengths as a writer of literary masterpieces.
The Cousins children and the Keatings children are subject to the whims of their parents and spend the rest of their childhood flitting back and forth across the country from one parent's home to the other, reunited in the summers at Beverly and Bert's new home in Virginia, where they are free to do as they please, happily adventuring to the beach and all around town while their parents sleep. The irresponsibility is overwhelming, and the consequences of self-directed children are painfully resonant into adulthood, though Patchett's skill at weaving through timelines prohibits any one scene from becoming paralyzing.
Indeed, most of the story is told from the perspectives of the now-adult children, reflecting on their summers together and the ways their lives have changed and not in the ensuing decades. Patchett beautifully dances the complicated line of lost communication and continued devotion between these semi-siblings, and I loved exploring their relationships and uncertainties with her. Every character seems to have lost his or her way, and the journey through Fanny's long relationship with older author Leon Posen and its aftermath was brilliantly executed, effectively demonstrating each character's confusion and frustration from toddlerhood into their adult lives.
Patchett is a master of navigating complex stories, and this novel is no exception. The slow start took a while to hook me, but the quiet beginning and understated storytelling only further dramatize the unexpected moments of the novel and emphasize Patchett's strengths as a writer of literary masterpieces.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, and Drug abuse
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